99-345DUBUQUE Making Final Preparations to Come Homeby Lt.j.g. William D. Gallagher

Sasebo, Japan -- After making history with the completion of the Navy's first ever crew
swap exchange of command, the San Diego based crew of the amphibious transport dock USS
DUBUQUE (LPD 8) is making preparations to come home. The exchange of command, which took
place between the former San Diego based crew of USS JUNEAU (LPD 10) and the former
Sasebo-based crew of USS DUBUQUE (LPD 8) was the first of its kind for the Navy and a
tremendous success for all involved.

Although the ships exchanged homeports, the crews and their families did not have to
permanently move to new homeports. Typically, when a ship moves to a new homeport, the
Navy relocates the crew and their families along with the vessel and the government pays
the associated costs of moving the households. In addition to alleviating the burden of
relocation for the Sailors and their families, the swap generated a cost avoidance for the
Navy of millions of dollars in moving expenses.

"It was a challenge," said Lt. Cmdr. James C. Hamblet, DUBUQUE's executive
officer, of Baldwin, N.Y., "but the crew performed superbly. A great deal of detailed
planning and close coordination with the Sasebo-based crew was required to make this swap
work. I think we've proven the crew swap concept," added Hamblet.

The San Diego and Sasebo crews of the JUNEAU and DUBUQUE spent nearly four weeks
familiarizing their replacements with each new vessel before the official
exchange-of-command ceremony took place at the end of July. Both ships are Austin-class
amphibious transport docks specifically configured to carry Marines and their equipment to
conduct amphibious operations in support of U.S. national interests. Although the ships
are similar, the two vessels were built in different shipyards and have undergone
modifications and maintenance in different homeports.

"It was awkward at first," said Machinist's Mate Chief Petty Officer George
J. Walz of Silverdale, Wash. "There was no precedent to follow, but with each
milestone we overcame the difficulties before us. In the end, the success of the turnover
is a testament to the resolve of the crew getting it done," added Walz who played a
major role in DUBUQUE's successful engineering certification this past week.

The San Diego based crew was tasked with steaming the JUNEAU to Japan in order to
provide our U.S. forward deployed naval forces with the newest LPD available. Now after
successfully exchanging commands, the San Diego based crew of the DUBUQUE will steam their
new ship back to San Diego for an extensive overhaul period.

"We really put a lot of work and effort into the JUNEAU," said Electronic
Warfare Operator 2nd class Petty Officer Samuel E. McCullar of Pampa, Texas. "It
really felt good to turn over such a fine ship to our forward deployed forces," added
McCullar.

The DUBUQUE is currently scheduled to arrive in San Diego on September 20 after a brief
stop in Okinawa and port visits in Saipan and Hawaii.